The Girl in Slytherin
by VeriteHonete
Summary: Years later she will remember that despite the flaws of her house and despite the cold looks of other houses for carrying herself in green so well, Slytherins take care of their own. NevilleOC, minor BlaiseOC.
1. Realizations

When she received her Hogwarts letter on her 11th birthday she was not surprised. That is not to say however, she was not excited. As any young witch or wizard raised in the Wizarding world, Vivian Varsey anticipated her Hogwarts with the same wonderment and anticipation as any. So when her letter came, her parents took her out for a nice dinner and they talked of what house they thought their only daughter would excel in.

Her father, a jovial and kind man, felt that his considerate and fair-minded daughter would fit well in his old house of Hufflepuff. Her mother, a stern but loving woman, felt her pragmatic and cunning child belonged in Slytherin, where she found sanctuary when she was just a young witch attending Hogwarts herself. Vivian, well, Vivian would be happy with either house, she thought.

August passed in a flurry of excitement and soon September arrived. With a kiss her parents sent her off with pride and she boarded the Hogwarts express. As one would expect of a child of 11, Vivian boarded the Hogwarts Express with great trepidation and curiosity. She had never been away from her parents for such a long time before. She knew that she would miss them dearly, and had already planned her first letter home.

With a lurch, the Hogwarts Express begins its journey, signifying her very own. She sat in her compartment alone with a churning tummy. It is on this very train that Vivian made her first friend. A small blonde witch with large eyes and funny dress robes holding a magazine she had never seen before. Fascinated by the stories told by the girl who shared her compartment, the two took to each other quickly. The rest of the journey was filled with giggles and excitement of what was to come.

Grateful that she made a friend so quickly and her fear of not making friends quelled, Vivian was able to fully enjoy the experience of Hogwarts without distraction. She would never forget that feeling of astonishment and the instant connection she felt when she took her first steps into the Great Hall of Hogwarts. The Sorting Hat made her stare in fascination and amusement, what a peculiar thing!

Slowly the list of students to be sorted dwindled. Vivian's anxious stare was fixed on her new friend who had been sorted into Ravenclaw with what had felt like centuries ago, she fidgeted in place. Although she had wished to be in either Hufflepuff like her father, or Slytherin like her mother, she was beginning to wish that she would not be separated from her new friend in this new setting.

With a cautious seat, Vivian held her breath and awaited the verdict.

 _"SLYTHERIN!"_

The Slytherin table burst into cheers in honor of their new addition. Slytherin! Her mother will be so happy (and smug), and her father would heave a sigh but would smile nonetheless and kiss her on the cheek and then turn and kiss her mother lovingly while joking about how even in this, Vivian is without a doubt her mother's daughter. Looking at her newly Ravenclaw friend, Vivian smiles and her friend smiles back. Beside her, an older boy turns to her and smiles at her in welcome. His name is Blaise Zabini and he seems friendly enough. They all do. They take her under their wing, and Slytherin is just as her mother describes it. She smiles and happily enjoys the rest of the feast.

Blaise would later introduce her to other Slytherins that she isn't sure she liked very much, but even so she quietly accepted the inclusion to what she recognized as acceptance into an exclusive group she recognizes has the potential to be powerful. She is grateful that Blaise is not like the others he associates with, at least not completely. They spout ideologies she isn't sure they completely understand. Her and Blaise usually shared a look whenever the blonde sharp looking one named Malfoy would go on his tangents. Despite the uncomfortableness of their friends' rants, she is happy with her house and her friend.

It wasn't until a few months later, that she realized that this contentment and this feeling of belonging is fleeting and her happiness would be tested by others. She will soon notice that not everyone is as welcoming or accepting to her house affiliation. It is apparent that acceptance and understanding extended to everyone in Hogwarts, except for Slytherin. Despite this, she remains friends with her Ravenclaw friend who sees beyond the color of her uniform and still makes her feel safe and happy.

Years later she will remember that despite the flaws of her house and despite the cold looks of other houses for carrying herself in green so well, that Slytherins take care of their own.


	2. Perspective

Honestly, Slytherins get a bad rep. A stigma is placed upon the house and its residents. Vivian didn't think there was anything wrong with being cunning, ambitious and proud. Neither was there anything wrong with valuing them either, for it is with these traits that allowed her to carry herself with an air of self-confidence. If people see her as arrogant and snobby, well that isn't her problem. If they had bothered to stop and think and gotten to know her as an individual, they would see that she is more than cunning, ambitious and proud. Yes, she is all of those traits, but she is more than her Slytherin stereotype. She does not hold any prejudices on a person's blood-status, she doesn't see the point.

The year she was sorted into Slytherin was the same year that the Chamber was opened. The resentment and fear of Slytherin house worsened and as a first year, she was confused and hurt by the animosity held against her. Even with the perpetrator revealed as a Gryffindor, the damage was already done. The house rivalries heightened and the resentment did not stop.

It is through the next couple of years she will get fully acquainted with rejection. Turned off by the arrogance and haughty entitlement that some of her housemates exuded, she tried to reach out to the other houses. Her hand of friendship to other houses will be met with disdain or scepticism. Despite her quiet confidence and the fact that Vivian was growing into herself beautifully, she could not help but feel hurt by the rebuffs of her peers in other houses. r She could not understand the injustice her and her dear friend Luna were subjected to. Calm, loyal and understanding Luna with her beautiful mind and her soothing presence.

Within Slytherin, Vivian and Blaise mostly stuck to themselves. Blaise was kind to her. She was not ignorant however to the flaws that he possessed, but seeing as he did not direct his indifferent and dismissive attitude towards her, Vivian felt no need to hold it against him. She is no stranger to her own flaws after all. She knows she can be petty, and quick to dismiss those who she feels have wronged her. Character flaws are nothing new to her, especially growing up in a house that seemed to familiarize itself with them with an easy acceptance.

Vivian is now in her third year at Hogwarts and Blaise is in his fourth. All of the houses are returning from the feast thrumming in excitement at the announcement that Dumbledore made during the opening speech. A Triwizard Tournament! With students of Durmstrang and Beauxbatons arriving next month!

"So what do you think? Are you going to try to put your name into the Goblet?" Vivian turns to Blaise with a raised brow, he smirks back at her.

"What do you think? Of course not! Do I look like I want to die? I do have _some_ self-preservation you know. You better not be thinking of trying to put your name in either."

"You know me better than that. Of course I'm not. I was just teasing. Should be interesting though, with the other schools coming."

"Gasp! What's this? Blaise are you telling me that something is great enough to catch your interest? I better alert _The Daily Prophet_!" Vivian teased and leaned her head on Blaise's shoulder. Blaise mockingly sneered and tucked her into his side. The two sat in silence for a bit, simply enjoying each others company. She was glad that he wasn't going to try to put his name in the Goblet. Although, she didn't really expect him to. Blaise found many things not worth his time, and eternal glory or not, the tournament was not worth his time.

"Wow, do us all a favour and leave the jokes to the Weasley Twins. That was just terrible." Vivian just laughs and makes a move to get up. Blaise let's her go reluctantly.

"Are you going to bed already?" Vivian stretches and nods her head.

"Yeah, I'm knackered. You know how I get after the feast, I'm ready to sleep for days."

"Alright, good night then old hag."

"Sweet dreams geezer!"

As Vivian lies in bed slowly drifting off to sleep, she wonders what dangers the Triwizard Tournament will bring to Hogwarts. It seemed like every year something went wrong, and this tournament was just begging for trouble.

The weeks following the announcement had the students of Hogwarts steadily getting increaaingly more excited. October was approaching, which meant that there was only one more month until the arrival of the students from Drumstrang and Beauxbatons.

Luna didn't seem to be affected by the excitement, instead she was her usual self and spent her time with Vivian trying to find proof of her current creature of interest and exploring the grounds of Hogwarts searching for whatever plant that Vivian was reading about. Out of all the subjects at Hogwarts, Herbology was Vivian's favorite. She found that she had a green thumb and although she did well in her subjects, it was Herbology that had her heart.

There was something amazing about plants that had Vivian in constant awe. The same plant can both kill and heal. Soothe and smother. It was with its dual nature that appealed to Vivian's practical side, a matter of perspective really. She first discovered her interest in her first year, when Madam Pomfrey had a special class on mandrakes. The mandrakes whom had the ability to kill when you hear their screams directly, but also was able to cure the petrified students that were attacked by the Basilisk.

Their uses extended further than just their singular uses. In potions, they opened whole new realms of possibilities. Where its freshness could affect a potion, but also its combination with other materials. Potions came a close second to Vivian's favorite subject, and that is not only because her head of house was her Potions professor.

Severus Snape was a harsh man. He had the ability to be cruel and unfair, which went against her moral code. He did favor his own house however, so she could not bring herself to hate the man. He was the only one who held no unfavorable bias towards Slytherin. He looked after them, and had little tolerance for stupidity. If she were being honest with herself (and she usually is), she could sympathize with his intolerance of the incompetent.

When the end of October finally did come and the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students arrived, Vivian was no longer Luna's only friend. It was in Vivian's third year at Hogwarts that a one Ginny Weasley entered her quiet stable world.


End file.
